Timp Sports Weekly
February 15, 2010
Publisher's Message
For this week's issue, we look at the Ferocious Pleasant Grove Vikings winning state in wrestling. We also look at stories about the Alta Hawks, AKA the Tweeties, defeating the Lone Peak Knights, AKA the Loners, at home, but dropping a road game to the Awesome American Fork Cavewomen. We also have a story about a hearbreaking loss at American Fork that left the Brighton Bengals, AKA the Bad Old Puddy Tats, shouting in frustration, "Thutherin' thuctash!" Finally, we will have stories about how American Fork, Lone Peak, and Pleasant Grove did at the recent State 5-A swim meet. Let's get to those stories.
Dean Von Memmott
Publisher
deanmemmott@hotmail.com
Ferocious PG Vikings Take State In Wrestling
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
After having fallen a point short of winning the state 5-A wrestling championship last winter, the Ferocious Pleasant Grove Vikings finally won during the state tournament at Utah Valley University's McKay Events Center Feb. 10.
What helped them pull off the feat was their moving 13 Ferocious Vikings into the quarterfinals. In noting that accomplishment, Salt Lake Tribune sportswriter Kyle "Straight to the Moon" Koon declared in his Feb. 10 article that Pleasant Grove had obtained a really strong chance of winning its first state title in 11 years.
By the time all the semifinal matches had been completed, Pleasant Grove had succeeded in placing only three guys in the championship matches: Korby "Mr. Adorable" Levin, Jesse "Outlaw" Christensen, and Dusty "Dust Storm" Dennison.
The other 10 Ferocious Vikings had to battle to stay alive in the consolation bracket. Viking Coach Rockin' Brock Moore said, "It was our guys in the consolation bracket that pulled it off for us. They scored enough points for us to win the state championship. That freed up our three remaining guys in the finals to focus on what they needed to do to win their matches."
The first Ferocious Viking to wrestle in the finals, Mr. Adorable took Ronnie "Count Howler" Wardleigh, a 119-pound grappler from Fremont. The only scoring in the match occurred when Mr. Adorable took Count Howler down. Late in the contest, the Fremonter tried to reverse the Ferocious Viking, but Mr. Adorable prevented him from doing so. Mr. Adorable said, "I used a front headlock to prevent the reversal. I wrestled him before. So I knew his style and how to deal with it. Tonight makes it two straight state titles for me."
In his 171 weight class match against Riverton's Jaren "The Purple Baron" Kurtz, Jesse "Outlaw" Christensen took a 4-1 lead. The Purple Baron tied the score at four on an escape and a reversal. In the third period, Outlaw scored a tie-breaking takedown to win 6-4. Outlaw said, "I didn't know anything about the guy I wrestled for tonight's championship. This was the first time I ever meet him. I worked so hard for this. This was such a great way for me to end my high school wrestling career. Last year, I took fourth I wrestled exhibition in ninth grade. I was jayvee my sophomore and junior years. I went to state my junior year, though. I wrestled Quin Nielson for third at last year's tournament, and he beat me. He helped me a lot with my wrestling career.
Dust Storm's 215 weight class match was a rematch against Jordan's Lars "Crow Bar" Overson. Exactly one week before, they had wrestled for a Region Four championship belt. Crow Bar defeated Dust Storm. Their Feb. 10 rematch had a different ending. Even though Crow Bar built up a 2-0 lead, Dust Storm tied match at two on a reversal, and he then escape Crow Bar's clutches in the second period. Escaping from Dust Storm at the end of the third period, Crow Bar forced the match into overtime. Dust Storm took him down to win 5-3. Dust Storm said, "I used a snap down to defeat him. I'm very familiar with him. I have wrestled him five times this year, so I knew what I need to do to defeat him tonight. This is the first overtime match I've won this year."
Among the other Ferocious Vikings that placed at the state tournament, Nick "The Slick" Whiteead, Quin "Cardinal Sin" Nielson, and Parker "The Pirana" Christensen took third. Brandon "Branding Iron" Dennison, Bridger "The Saw" Cutler, and Zach "Big Dog" Dawe took fourth. Chance "The Adventurer" Robbins took fifth and Russ "The Fuss" McDonnell took sixth.
Awesome AF Cavewomen Post Home Win Over Alta Tweeties Feb. 11
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
In Region Four girls' hoop action Feb. 12, the Alta Hawks, AKA the Tweeties, received a hard reminder that in spite of becoming the only team to defeat the Lone Peak Knights, AKA Loners, that they should never assume that their hold on their league's No. 2 spot was secure. In swooping into American Fork that Friday, the Tweeties got taken down 79-75 by the Awesome Americfan Fork Cavewomen.
Led by Lexi "Somwhere Over the Rainbow" Garland and Kenzi Morrison, the Tweeties broke a 4-4 tie and flew out to a 16-8 lead. Ashley Baugh and Cassidy Fraughton guided the Awesome Cavewomen within 8-6 and 18-12. However, the first period ended with the Tweeties chirpping proudly about their 20-14 lead.
The second period opened with Tweetie Sarah "Two" Little scoring on offensive rebounding. With Shelby Carson and Fraughton taking control of the boards that quarter, the Awesome Cavewomen began an amazing comeback. They went on an 11-0 scoring run that climaxed with a Fraughton foul shot putting them ahead 23-22. A Megan Eliason trey improved American Fork's lead at 25-22. The Tweeties tied game at 25 and 27 on shots form Haylie Shurtz and Morrison. Haylee Sua-Filo and Carson scored on a total of three offensive rebounds four-point leads. The half ended with American Fork leading by just 37-35.
The second half saw the game stay tight as the lead changed hands from time to time. The Tweeties got their first second-half lead when a Morrison three-point play put the score at 44-43. A Fraugthon trey restored the lead to the Cavewomen. When they took a 55-53 lead on a Fraughton trey sunk during the buzzer at the end of the third quarter, they knew the Tweeties were going to be more aggressive in the final period.
A Garland trey gave Alta a 56-55 lead at the start of the final period. Garland racked up eight points early in that quarter to give the Tweeties a narrow lead. When Tweetie Erin Foster sank a layup on a steal, Alta looked as though it would flap home with a narrow win. However, American Fork went on an 8-2 scoring run climaxing with Saddie Williams sinking an underhnaded shot that gave the Awesome Cavewomen a 70-69 lead. The lead kept trading hands until the Tweeties made the fatal mistake of fouling Carson twice in the game's final minute. A niece of former American Fork football starter Shane "The Saunce" Carson, she sank four straight foul shots that smashed a 75-75 tie and gave American Fork the win.
"I was as focused as a golfer when I went to the foul line both of those two times in the final 30 seconds," Carson said.
American Fork Coach Corey Clayton said, "Even though they did beat Lone Peak two nights before, we thought we could play with them. We tried all sorts of things to keep Morrison and Garland under control. Saddie Williams and Megan Eliason did well in coming off the bench and hitting crucial shots that kept us in the game."
Baugh led American Fork with 24 points while Carson added another 18. Morrison led the Tweeties with 25 points while Garland added another 12 and Shurtz 11.
Alta Tweeties Hand Lone Peak Loner Girls 1st League Loss
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
Even though the Lone Peak Knights, AKA the Loners, had pretty much had the Region Four girls' basketball title clinched, they received a reminder in a Feb. 9 game at Alta, they still weren't invincible. AKA the Tweeties, the Alta Hawks defeated the Loners 53-49.
Led by Whitney Johnson and Marquelle "What D" Funk, the Loners dominated the first quarter. They built up 14-8 lead over the Tweeties. Just before the quarter ended, Tweetie Kenzie Morrison, a "distant cousin" of late rocker Jim "Light My Fire" Morrison of the Doors, swished a three-point shot to cut the Loner lead to 14-11.
Early in the second quarter, Funk sank a shot to improve the lead at 16-11. After it had grown to 17-11 on a Maddie McGrath foul shot, the Loners' lead stopped swelling. Three-pointers hit by Morrison and Hayli Shurtz sent the Tweeties flapping ahead 17-17. A McGarth bucket tied the game at 19, but the Tweeties took control of the boards through the rebounding of Sarah "Two" Little and Lexi "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" Garland. By the time the Loners started scoring again, the Tweeties had built up a 27-19 lead. Loner Whitney Johnson scored four unanswered points to put the Loners within 27-23 at halftime.
In the early second half, Funk guided the Loners within 30-28 through sinking a layup and a trey. Before Lone Peak could tie the score at 30, Alta's Erin Foster hit trey. It gave the Tweeties much to chirp about as they went on a 9-0 scoring run. After Little had improved the Tweetie lead at 39-30, Funk sank a shot during a buzzer.
Through the foul shooting of Mikayla McChesney and Funk, the Loners managed to charge back within 43-41. However, two Garland foul shots and a Shultz trey prevented the Loners from tying the score. The Tweeties built up a lead as wide as 50-41. Johnson stirred another Loner rally through scoring five points. After a Funk bucket had put Lone Peak within 51-49, Morrison hit two foul shots that clutched the game for Alta.
Funk led the Loners with 23 points while Johnson added another 14. Shurtz led the Tweeties with 20 points while Morrison added another 14.
Awesome AF Cavemen Defeat Bad Old Brighton Puddy Tats 64-52 in Feb. 10 Boys' Hoop Action
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
The Brighton Bengals, AKA the Bad Old Puddy Tats, had only one thing to say about their 12-point loss in the Awesome American Fork Cavemen's gym Feb. 10: "Thutherin' Tuctash!" American Fork neutered those Bad Old Puddy Tats 64-49.
Led by Marcel Davis and Nate Ensign, the Awesome Cavemen outscored Brighton 17-10 in the first quarter. The next period, American Fork became more aggressive inside the key. Alex Ross, Austin Waddoups, and Danny Beddes held their own on the boards against Bad Old Puddy Tats like Toni "The Bony" Kljicevic, Brandon Miller, and Austin "Mr. Rock" Hudson.
Ross said, "I think we held our own well against them."
American Fork Coach Doug Meacham said, "Austin Waddoups didn't hesitate in going for rebounds. They tried really hard to get second shots, but Waddoups kept denying them offensive rebounds."
American Fork kept the Puddy Tats' top gun Miller in check in the first half. He didn't become hot until the second half. By the start of it, the Awesome Cavemen had command of a 38-23 lead. A Davis jumper sparked a 10-7 scoring run that enabled American Fork to maintain its double digit lead.
American Fork came really close to pushing its lead past the 20-point mark when a Mikey Wells trey put the score at 51-32. However, the combined shooting Corby and Brandon Miller enabled the Bad Old Puddy Tats to keep the point spread from becoming more than 19 points long.
The game almost turned violent in the fourth quarter, when an American Fork dad heard an assistant, Brighton Bantu-American coach shout an F-word at Quincy Bair's mom. The assistant coach and the American Fork father got into a shouting match over the bad word. Two policemen escorted the dad out of the gym, but did not arrest him. The American Fork dad spent the rest of the game watching it from the gym's main entrance. The father liked what he witnessed.
The Awesome Cavemen maintained their double-figure lead until the scoreboard read 59-40. A Corby Miller jumper opened a 12-4 scoring run for the Bad Old Puddy Tats. After Brighton had come back within 59-50, Whaddoups hit an inside shot and two free throws. Bair hit a foul shot to conclude the night's scoring.
Ross led American Fork with 13 points while Wells, Davis, and Waddoups each contributed 11 points. Corby Miller led the Bad Old Puddy Tats with 15 points while Brandon Miller added another 11. Bair and Davis led American Fork with seven boards each while Nate Ensign pulled down another five.
AF Boys Place 6th, AF Girls 7th at State 5-A Swim Meet
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
At the State 5-A swim meet at BYU's Richards Building Feb. 11-12, the Awesome American Fork Cavemen took sixth in the boys' competition and the Awesome American Fork Cavewomen seventh in the girls'.
In the boys' 200-yard medley relay, the team of Seth Winn, T.J. Murphy, Daryk Childs, and Wade Healy took sixth. Consisting of Jamie Nebeker, Morgan King, Madison King, and Camille Okleberry, the Cavewomen's 200-yard medley relay took fifth in a time of 1:58.88.
Oklesberry and Morgan King took sixth and ninth respectively in the girls' 200-yard freestyle. Okleberry took eighth in the girls' 500-yard freestyle. Healy finished eighth in the boys' 200-yard freestyle and 11th in the boys' 100-yard freestyle. Morgan King also took eighth in the girls' 100-yard freestyle.
Nebeker emerged as the only American Forker to win a state champion at the swim meet when she won the girls' 200-yard individual medley. She also took second in the girls' 100-yard breaststroke. She joined Okleberry, Morgan King, and Morrison in winning fourth place in the girls' 400-yard freestyle relay.
Abby Morrison finished 15th in the girls' 50-yard freestyle. Chris Nielson took 16th in the boys' 100-yard butterfly.
Tyler Cox took 16th in the boys' 500-yard freestyle.
The team of Sieanna Warenski, Katie Steele, Sydney Young, and Abby Morrison took 11th in the girls' 200-yard freestyle relay. The team of Cox, Childs, Zach Frost, and Zach Murphy took 10th in the boys' 200-yard freestyle relay.
Ethan Pollock took 16th in the boys' 100-yard backstroke.
Healy, Seth Wynn, Zach Murphy, and T.J. Murphy joined forces to finish fifth in the boys' 400-yard freestyle relay.
Lone Peak Loners Win 3 State Swim Titles at Season-Ending Meet At BYU
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
AKA the Loners, the Lone Peak Knights won three events at the state 5-A swim meet held Feb. 11-12 at BYU's Richards Building.
The first event won by the Loners was the boys' 200-yard freestyle relay. Chris Nielson, Taylor Bradshaw, Nolan Dodge, and Connor Christensen pooled their efforts together to win that event.
Loner Brittani Finlayson, a junior, won the girls' 100-yard breaststroke in a time of 1:06.08, earning her a possible All-American consideration.
Loner Connor Christensen tied Bad Old Brighton Puddy Tat Greg Ballif for first in the boys' 100-yard breaststroke. Christensen said, "It's so thrilling to have tied him for first. This is such a rarity. This makes this meet all the more memorable for me, since I'm a senior." Christiansen also took second in the boys' 50-yard freestyle.
The team of Sam Scoresby, Cate Woolston, Brittani Finlayson, and Kira Hamilton took third in the girls' 200-yard medley relay. The team of Nielson, Dodge, Christiansen, and Zack Bradshaw took fourth in the boys' 200-yard medley relay.
In the girls' 200-yard freestyle, the team of Breanna Burk, Finlayson, Hamilton, and Scoresby took seventh. In the girls' 400-yard breaststroke, the team of Woolston, Hamilton, Hubbert, and Hannah Crain took sixth. The team of Taylor Bradshaw, Zach Bradshaw, Kevin Hamilson, and Tanner Bishoff took ninth in the boys' 400-yard freestyle.
Chris Nielson took second in the boys' 100-yard backstroke.
Loner Rachel Hubbert tied Ferocious Viking Christie Bunnell for seventh in the girls' 200-yard frestyle.Hubbert also took ninth in the girls' 500-yard freestyle. Tanner Bishoff took 15th in the boys' 200-yard freestyle.
Woolston took eighth in the girls' 50-yard freestyle.
Lone Peak took fourth in the boys' division and sixth in the girls'.
Ferocious Vikings Finish 14th in Boys' Division, 15th in Girls at State Swim Meet
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
The Ferocious Pleasant Grove Vikings were permitted to send only five swimmers to the State 5-A meet at BYU during Feb. 11-12. So it was hardly surprising that they finished 14th in the boys' division and 15th in the girls'
Despite being the only Ferocious Viking to compete in the state girls' division, Christie Bunnell did pretty well, and she also received an award for being a member of the state 5-A girls' all-academic team. Bunnell finished fourth in the girls' 100-yard freestyle and seventh in the girls' 200-yard freestyle
Jordan Bramhall took 13th in the boys' 50-yard freestyle. Matt Rameson took 14th in the boys' 500-yard freestyle.
The team of Bramhall, Rameson, Brayden Cutler, and Dane Ostergaard took 12th.
